Page 17 of Out of My Flocking Mind

It made me wonder just how much that man was hiding, because he sure as fuck wasn’t telling me everything.

Chapter Five

Walking around outside helped clear my mind.

Doing it beside Harrison reminded me of all the shit I’d rather not think about, though.

He had spoken little after my shower. In fact, by the time we left the house, he reminded me far more of the man I’d gotten used to before. He seemed closed off, his words careful and flat.

Was that because he had to focus more when out and around others? Was the glimpse I’d gotten of him at the house the real him? The one beneath the layers of control and shields and power?

Ever since leaving, he’d hardly looked my way. It felt as though he had little idea I even existed beside him. Despite walking along together, he didn’t seem to pay any attention to me.

My toes caught on the sidewalk—not all that uncommon, really—and I braced myself to hit the ground as usual. Instead, strong arms caught me.

I twisted to find Harrison with his arm around me.

So much for thinking he wasn’t paying attention to me…

He released me as quickly as he’d saved me, though. “You need to pick your feet up more when you walk.”

“That’s not the problem.”

“Then what is it? Will you blame the sidewalk?”

“Not the sidewalk—my crow.”

“You blame a bird?”

And wow, was that a mocking question.

“Not just any bird. You saw—I am evidently the Clan of Chaos. Things around me just go wrong. That means things break around me and my feet will almost always find any little imperfection in a sidewalk.”

“Is that why you fell last night?”

“No—that one was all tequila.”

He shook his head before continuing on, not waiting as though he knew I’d catch up either way.

Which I did, despite my short little legs.

“So where are we going?” I asked when the boredom got to me. We’d driven to an area off the strip, and Harrison had parked the car in a large, public lot. It was strange to see him around so many humans.

Usually, I saw him either in terms of the council or alone. Seeing him in the midst of the busy sidewalks made him stand out.

He really was handsome…

Fuck, the man could have been a model. His pale skin and perfectly formed jaw would be totally fitting on the cover of a magazine. I imagined him talking about his workout regimen and how he drinks gross tea and meditates when at home. The bright sun made his hair appear an even lighter shade of blond, and the curls made it seem wild.

“We are going to meet with a group of Minds.”

“Why?”

“I have to check in. It is part of my duties, and given our search for your attacker, it makes sense to touch base with a few of my people.”

“Great. Spending time with a bunch of people who can crawl around in my head is exactly what I was hoping to do today. I thought the whole point of being with you was to prevent that.”

“You worry too much. You will be under my protection, so nothing will happen.”

---